The Legacy of Shannara
by Kadya
Summary: Leo, a young woman from the past, finds herself running from a shadowy foe with nowhere to run. An accident happens that takes her into the far future, where she meets up with Druids and Tai, a mysterious young man who’s destiny is not in his control
1. Chapter One

Disclaimer: The Shannara series, albeit hard to admit, is not mine. It belongs to Terry Brooks.

Author's Note: This is an experimental fan fiction of mine and I hope you all like it. Please review at your leisure, both critiques and general comments are more than welcome.

As the sun lowered beyond the horizon, the air grew silent and still. The valley of Shady Vale grew colder as the night came to claim it. He had almost arrived to his ancestral home. The home his family had lived in since the time of Shea Ohmsford hundreds of years ago. Others like Wil, Brin, Jair, Coll, and Par Ohmsford had once lived there as well. Walker Boh had also done so until he became the keeper of the Four Lands and the leader of the new Druids. It had been three hundred fifty years since the battle with the Shadowen and things had been quiet ever since.

He had lived in the quiet Vale for the first six years of his life as a normal boy. His mother and he then moved to Darklin Reach to Hearthstone. Although he liked the solitude of the forest, he never knew the real reason for why they left. Some had said that it was because of Tai's unusual gift. His mother had never told him, and he had never asked. He had never really cared what the reason was. He never really cared about anything anymore... or anyone.

For as long as Tai Ohmsford could remember, he had always felt strangely empty and alone....

_Just another boring day,_ she thought dismally. _At least it's almost over._

Leo Maylon walked down the street to her house from the school bus. Cars hurried by, but she hardly even noticed them. For the most of her life, it was like this. Get up, go to school, come home, do homework, go to bed. Once or twice a month she would go out with her friends and try to have a bit of fun, though she never really did. She had always felt that something crucial was missing, although Leo did not know what that was. Friends would try to cheer her up, but she concluded that it was no use. Many had completely given up and avoided her. They would say things like, "Why don't you go out sometimes?" "You have to get out of the house." Most often was, "Do something!" She just shrugged these comments off and went about her life of solitude.

Once, she had tried to act normal and to have fun, tried to have a social life, but it never worked. Something would always happen to end her fun. All of them strange. She guessed that these reasons were why many were afraid of her.

A few years ago, at her birthday party, she and her friend had a big fight over some water toy in her pool. A few minutes after the scuffle, her friend had sworn that when she went swimming in the pool, the water had sucked her down to the bottom. Luckily her brother, four years older, dove down and pulled her up.

A few months after that, a fire started in the next door neighbour's house and nearly killed the family of five who was still in it. She had also been in it, although she easily got out since she had been walking out of the front door. All of a sudden, the whole house went up in flames without warning. Fortunately, the family rushed out before the house fell apart.

Earthquakes happened frequently, which she learned that these started since she was born. Other phenomenon's like that happened around the same time, such as the high winds and tornadoes.

All this led her to the conclusion that she was cursed.

Once Leo returned home, she dumped her books on the floor wearily and lay down on her bed. She was exhausted. And having that huge history test had not helped at all. She knew that she had bombed it and was not looking forward to her parents' reactions to the grade. The only thought that went threw her mind after the test was that she wished that the school would burn down. The only subjects that she was interested in were science, math, and music. Those at least she needed to learn for her future. She had settled on either being a singer or a biologist. The only subject that she really despised was history. All they did during that class was learn dates that she would never need to know in real life. No one actually asked you when World War I started. Why would she study the past when she was planning for the future? Leo was taught to never look back and to never have any regrets. The latter was one that she just could not follow and probably never be able to do. Leo had too many mistakes in her life that she wished that she could redo.

She sighed and picked up her books to do her homework. It took quite a while to do, but she finished just in time for the six o clock news. She rushed over to the TV and turned it on. She never missed the news. All of Leo's friends thought that she was crazy, but she did not care. Leo just liked to see what was going on in the world.

There was a bit of static as the news started then the anchorman started. "A catastrophe has just occurred at Hamillin High." That was Leo's School! "A fireball, as witnesses describe, hit the side of the school, causing a fire to break out. Luckily, this all happened after school was let out for the day. But reporters are now saying that many teachers that remained inside of the school were severely burnt." Leo sat up, startled. "Fire fighters have now counted two teachers dead from smoke inhalation. They are not yet certain if there are any others that were caught in the blaze. Four more teachers are still missing. We will now talk with Mike Stephenson outside of the school for details...."

Leo was far beyond shocked now. She was terrified! This had never happened before. It obviously had not been a normal fire. Fireballs do not hit buildings. They did not even exist!

Turning off the TV without thinking, she ran to her room and threw herself on the bed, tears streaming down her face. Then she remembered the reoccurring dream that she kept having. In it, there was a shadow. It was the size of a large cat, but was misshapen and as black as coal. It would spit out fire; cause floods, earthquakes, and windstorms. She had this dream almost every night, and almost every night she would wake up in a cold sweat. When she was little, she told her parents, who then took her to a doctor. The doctor just gave her pills that never seemed to work. They had even taken her to see a psychiatrist, but even she had been confused with the dream. After a while, the doctor told her that she had an over-imaginative mind and that she should just relax. Leo had tried this, but to no avail. After a while, she stopped complaining to her parents and kept quiet about the demon-like thing. After all, how do you fight your mind?


	2. Chapter Two

Disclaimer: Shannara series not written by me. Damn shame that

Author's Note: This story is going to speed up soon, but as with many stories, there has to be a basis so that you'll know what's going on later on and it will continue to make sense. The next chapter will involve Brook's wonderful world of magic. Again, reviews are more than welcome.

Leo awoke from her thoughts as the phone rang shrilly. She jumped up in a rush to answer it. It was a continual game with her brother, Jake, and herself. The first to reach the phone ... well won! It was a childish game, but they still played it since they were kids. She picked up the receiver to find that her brother had got to it first. She put the receiver back down and waited to see if it was for her.

"Leo! Phone!" Jake yelled from his room upstairs.

She immediately picked up the phone again. "Got it!" she yelled back up. "Hello?" she asked expectantly.

"Hey! What's up?" It was Alex, one of her closest friends.

Nothing much..." she answered, wondering why Alex was calling. She thought about telling Alex about the school, but then stopped when the words began to form on her mouth. She didn't want to talk about it. Anyway, Alex would find out soon enough.

"Do you want to go shopping tonight downtown at about seven?" Alex waited for a response, but was obviously surprised to hear the answer.

"Sure!" _I need to get out of the house._ "Are we meeting at the corner of Gole and Westlon like usual?" Shopping would help her forget about the fire at school.

"Yup! Just take the bus and meet us there!"

"Who else is coming?"

Alex had to think a minute, then responded "The usual."

"Um, alright. I'll see you all in about forty five minutes!"

"See ya!" was the chipper response and the phone went dead.

Leo hung up the phone and paced around her room, wondering what she should wear. She only had about twenty minutes to get ready and gather her stuff.

She finally chose a new pair of jeans, and a fleece, green sweater with a blue tank top underneath. She found her CD Walkman and about thirty of her favourite CD's (in a portable CD case) for the bus ride. She stuffed it all into a small black backpack and ran upstairs to tell her brother where she was going.

"Jake, I'm going downtown for awhile. I'll see you sometime tonight." Leo was about to leave the room when her brother cleared his throat nervously.

"What is it?" Leo asked while rolling her eyes, knowing he was about to ask her a favour.

"Could you pick up my bow from the repair shop while you're there?" His question almost came out as a plea. He continued to stare at the homework that was spread out on his desk.

Leo thought a moment, contemplating her answer. "What will you do in return?" she teased. She just couldn't resist a chance to upset her brother.

"What do you mean?" her brother asked with an eyebrow raised, shifting into a defensive pose, ready for a fight.

Leo sighed. _Typical Jake. _"Man, you don't know how to take a joke! I'll see you tonight. Remember to tell mom and dad where I went." She always loved to tease her brother. She almost liked it as much as she loved to sing.

She ran into her room to look at herself in the mirror one final time. With careful scrutiny, she concluded that she looked all right. She ran outside and rushed for the bus.

Leo met up with her friends downtown. They did the usual shopping. Clothes, shoes, magazines, and makeup ... the list went on. She picked up her brother's bow from the repair shop. She always found it strange that her brother liked to shoot a bow. He would never kill anything, but he used cans for target practice. The next stop was the music store. She wanted to do two things there. Buy a CD and talk to the studio producer. His name was Joe Robins. He had immediately saw Leo's talent at a try-out six months ago. Since then, she had written six songs, with his help. Joe was very optimistic about her chances of her becoming a major hit. She had not told her friends about his comment yet, wanting to keep it a secret until her CD came out.

"Hi, Joe," she greeted him coolly as she entered the store and spotted him looking over some files on the computer. He was dressed in cargoes and a white T-shirt with a blue, plaid dress shirt on top. He never did dress his age, which was forty-two, but he could get away with thirty-five or so.

"Hey! How's my number one customer?" He was always friendly to everyone, even though she was single handedly making him go crazy.

"I was wondering when you wanted to look over my new song?" Leo looked over her shoulder to see if her friends had heard her. "Are we still getting together next Thursday at five?" she whispered.

"Yep," he whispered, following suit as he noticed the problem.

"Alright. I'll see you then." She left the store feeling a bit better at the good news.

They had been shopping for at least an hour and a bit when Leo and her friends spotted the hottest guy you could ever imagine walking down the street. This guy was pure model material! Every girl within range was just standing stalk still, staring with mouths wide open.

Leo thought about introducing herself, but then thought better of it. She was very bold when meeting people, believing that all people were just a person underneath. But something held her back. It was just this nagging feeling inside of her, warning her of something.

While her friends continued to stare, Leo stepped back from the crowd and into the shadow of a building. Her conscious was telling her that he was dangerous, though she didn't know why.

She was still backing towards the building when she noticed that he was looking at her. She stared back, unable to do anything else. A strange, terrifying bond tied between them, like an understanding.

Leo was so full of fear that she could hardly move. It was not until the guy started to advance towards her that Leo bolted away from him. He then picked up his pace as well as the crowd parted.

Leo turned a corner and ran into a magazine store. She ran to the back of the store as the cashier yelled at her to stop running. She turned around to find him entering the store. She froze solid when she saw the look on his face. He was furious! Leo wondered what she had done and forced her legs to move once more.

Leo scrambled towards the fire exit at the back of the store and ran out into the alley, her pursuer right behind.

_Why is this happening? What did I do to deserve this? _Her mind scrambled for an answer that would not come.

_Why me...? _Her mind screamed.

She ran until she got to the bus stop. The bus was just about to depart when she pounded on the door. The driver opened the door and she gave him way too much bus fair, but he did not mind. Leo went to the back of the bus, exhausted from the chase. She looked out the window to find the guy watching as the bus pulled away. At that moment, Leo swore that she saw something move within him, but put the thought aside, thinking that it was just a trick of the mind.

_Finally!_

As she got off at her bus stop, a wind blew past her. Just a few more minutes and Leo would be home and safe. Unfortunately, the bus came nowhere near her house. She had to walk through a creek valley to get to it. She looked around, expecting the mystery guy to jump out from a bush, but that was ridiculous for him to keep up with a bus.

She walked confidently through the valley, although she was still shaken by what happened.

A wind came up from behind her and Leo heard a voice calling her name. She turned around; perhaps a friend of hers had followed her home....

_Au shit!_ It was him! He must have a car or something. _But, how...?_

There was really nowhere to run. If he were this persistent, then he would know where Leo lived.

_Why me? _The question kept repeating in her mind.

Then he came at her, ceasing her shoulders with inhuman strength. Leo grasped his arms, unsuccessfully trying to pry them loose. She finally did with a swift kick that landed on his shin. He fell back in pain.

_I guess those martial arts lessons came in handy after all. _She was pretty high up in the belts.

_No way!_

He was up again, as if the blow meant nothing. He seemed to shimmer slightly, as if he was disappearing, then he became whole again. His composure renewed, he attacked again, but cautiously with deadly intent.

Leo backed away; wondering what sort of being could shrug off a blow like that. She had used all of her strength in it, but it seemed that it was a waste of her time.

Once again, he grabbed her shoulders and Leo, once again, kicked him in the shin. He didn't even flinch! He stared at her. She, unable to pull away, stared into his eyes as well. Once again the kind of understanding she had felt go through her emerged. It was a terrifying one. Leo struggled now to break her gaze, but couldn't. Instead, she felt something inside of her start to build up.

He started to shimmer slightly, and Leo saw that beneath his body, there was some other form, black and grotesquely ugly. But that one glance was all she had. Leo still felt the power within creeping up.

_Such power_ she thought! Whatever it was, it was building with the fear she was feeling.

Her opponent seemed to release his tightened grasp, a look of surprise growing on his face. Then a frightened, but determined one replaced it.

The power within her kept rising. She didn't know how to control it! Finally, it reached the breaking point, all of her efforts to control it in vain. It surged out of her. First, a jarring earthquake ripped through the valley, unsettling her opponent's foothold, but he still held her shoulders. Second, it began to pour. Sheets of water started to flood the area. Third, a fierce wind blew leaves, mud, and water around them, hitting them with stinging blows. Leo didn't even feel it. Lastly, something came out of her. It formed into a ball of fire and hit him directly in the chest, burning his shirt and his skin. This caused him to lose his grip and fall back in pain.

And then something else happened. A voice called out to her. A soothing voice that sounded like a mother's talking to her child. It reached out to her through the madness, cradling her mind until she was calm and relaxed.

The next thing she knew, a light enveloped her and carried her away while the man on the ground reached for her, but missed by just inches.

She was carried far away to where she was sealed away for a long time....


	3. Chapter Three

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

A/N:  Well, as I promised, things are finally making sense with this story.  I'm sure a few were wondering just what I was thinking, but I hope your fears are put to rest with this addition.  Have fun and please review.

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Walker Boh and Tai Ohmsford met up in their ancestors' home. Walker had needed the use of the young Tai Ohmsford. Tai had the use of the wishsong. He had found out about Tai's unusual gift when he saw him as a child. He now had need of it, or at least Allanon's shade did. 

All over the land, earthquakes had been coming and going. Forest fires were now becoming very common. Flash floods were also becoming frequent along the Rainbow Lake and the rivers that ran into it. Another strange thing was the windstorms that came out of nowhere without warning.

Tai was needed to help find the source of these phenomenons. Long ago, when Walker Boh had found out about the wishsong in Tai, he knew that Tai had a task to perform with it. His family, as well as Walker's, had been given the blood trust from Allanon in the time of Brin and Jair Ohmsford. When one of the Ohmsfords got the wishsong, they were meant to somehow use it to aid the Four Lands. Luckily, no Ohmsford had been given the wishsong since Par Ohmsford three hundred fifty years ago. Now it was Tai's time to use it.

Walker met Tai at a tavern the following day after they both got there. Allanon had sent Tai through a dream. The same thing had happened to Walker Boh. They were to meet each other in Shady Vale. Even Allanon did not know why these disturbances were happening, so he sent Walker and Tai to come to him in the Hadeshorn.

"Hello, Tai," Walker greeted.

"Hello, Walker," Tai said, unfazed by Walker's sudden approach.

"I presume that Allanon has sent you hear as he has me." The other nodded. "So, have you accepted Allanon's invitation?" he added with a grin.

"Sure, why not? I really don't have anything better to do with my time," Tai answered matter-of-factly.

"You're the same as you've always been," Walker answered sadly, knowing how Tai's life had been as he grew up. Tai had always been dreading the day when he would be called to use the wishsong. Tai hated it with a passion. He was now a young adult, still too young to be going towards an adventure quite like this.

"Where are we going anyway?" asked Tai, who was now showing an interest in the matter.

"Well, you're straight forward," Walker said with an eyebrow raised. He sighed, and then answered, "We go to the Hadeshorn to talk with Allanon, who must know something more on the matter. I still don't understand how all of these things are happening. All of these disasters started three months ago. It doesn't make sense. I sent a few Druids out to monitor them, but they came back with reports that they were just random occurrences. The only information that helped was that, as they got closer to the Hadeshorn, the disturbances grew more frequent.

"What are we supposed to do?"

Walker Boh looked down to the ground, and then cocked his head. "I believe that that the Druids were on the right track. All of this seems to radiate from the Hadeshorn. Once we are there, I want to put a stop to them," Walker paused, contemplating on what else to say.

"So, we go to the Hadeshorn and talk with Allanon?" Tai made the question more statement than question.

"Yes, though I believe that Allanon knows exactly where the source is..." he trailed off purposefully.

"The Druids never tell the whole truth. Just half-truths," Tai finished the thought, knowing of the past history of the Druids and their ways. "When do we leave?"

The Dark Uncle stood up and answered, "Tomorrow morning."

They set off at dawn, both eager to see this quest through. Tai was already planning on what he was going to do after the matter was settled. He already knew that the wishsong was to be used, although he did not know for what reason. He had practised it while he was in Hearthstone. His mother had supported and helped in any way that she could. She hadn't the full understanding of its powers, but knew of its basic uses that had been used by Ohmsfords in the past. With what she had known, she used to instruct him. Walker Boh, otherwise known as the Dark Uncle, had even come by once in a while to monitor and instruct Tai in its uses. Because of this, Tai had control over it and knew how to use it, but he had never used it to its full potential. He was frightened that maybe there was no limit.

The journey took them six days to do on horseback. No trouble came to them except one earthquake. It happened as they were passing through the Black Oaks, but it was just a small tremor. During the journey, Walker tested Tai's abilities and instructed the youth some more. Tai's magic had the characteristics of Brin and Jair's, and was therefore doubly useful, but doubly dangerous.

As they rode towards the Hadeshorn, they caught up on each other's lives

"How are the Druids doing or are they just hiding? I mean, I haven't seen one in a while. Where are they anyway?" Tai asked. The Druids were becoming a common sight to see throughout the Four Lands, until about three months ago.

"We have been holding meetings every night since the disturbances started," Walker answered wearily, shaking his head.

Walker Boh, three hundred fifty years ago, had brought back the Druids from Paranor. Since then, he had rebuilt their order. The Druids now devoted their lives to serving the Four Lands and keeping the peace.

"What have you concluded on about the disturbances?"

"Nothing really," Walker again shook his head. "I told them about Allanon's dream, but I did not tell them about my feelings of Allanon's reluctance to share his information. We have made no progress in this. All of this searching has just left us all puzzled."

"So you just gave up...." Tai immediately regretted his remark as Walker's face turned hard and bitter. This was the only thing that the new Druids had ever failed to do, and Walker would never forget it. He was a perfectionist at heart.

"I did not give up," he answered under his breath. His face was made of stone as he talked, fighting to not let out his frustration that had built itself up over the past few months, despite Tai's shortsightedness and inexperience.

They did not talk for a while after that.

They reached the Valley of Shale a couple days later. They dismounted their horses and started the short walk down to the edge of the waters. The tremors, along with other disturbances, had worsened as they drew closer to the Hadeshorn, confirming Walker's suspicions.

As they reached the shore, Tai stopped walking to stay a few feet behind Walker. He remembered from stories of Shea and Allanon that only the Druid would summon forth the shade and that any company would stay behind. Walker Boh turned around at Tai's hesitation and beckoned him with his hand to follow. Tai obeyed; mystified that Walker would want him with him.

They finally reached the shore. Walker immediately lifted his arms and made gestures towards the lake. The waters rippled in response. The cries rouse from a whisper to a deafening roar. The water hissed and spit with anger at awakening. Out of the chaos a shade rose forbiddingly and took shape.

-Speak my name-

A shade would never stay unless they knew whom the shade was.

"Hello, Allanon," was Walker's response, which had a slight sarcastic tone in it, at which Allanon frowned darkly.

The shade of Allanon shifted before continuing. A gesture that Tai would have guessed was one of uneasiness. Allanon's shade shifted his gaze to Tai, who shifted uncomfortably under the gaze, then back to Walker.

-There is something terribly wrong with the Four Lands, as you already know-

Allanon paused, contemplating on what to say next.

Walker then spoke up and asked, "Where is the source, Allanon?" The question was so surprising that Allanon's eyes widened, then narrowed in anger. "I know you know where it is. It has to be somewhere around here. Stop this beating-around-the-bush nonsense!" Walker's frustration, which he had held back for Tai a few days ago, was now being unleashed. His temple seemed to pulse at his anger. Tai stepped back, terrified of Allanon's quick temper.

-You would dare talk like that here? Know where you are speaking, Dark Uncle-

Walker held the shade's gaze and did not back down. Tai, again, took a step back. _What is Walker doing? He's going to get himself killed!_

-I see that you have already guessed-

Allanon's shade said while his anger diminished.

–I will waste no more time. The disturbances have been generated from this very spot-

Walker let out a gasp while Tai looked on, still wondering what Allanon needed from him.

–I know this has come as a shock to you-

Now it was Tai's turn to speak up. Gathering what little courage he possessed, he walked to the edge of the lake, held Allanon's now averted gaze and asked, "Why do you need me?"

-There is a great power within this lake. It has been trapped here for many, many years. For a few months its power has been building. The whole reason this lake exists is because of its power. I believe that we must set it free for these disturbances to cease. Your job is to aid its escape-

He paused intentionally to let everything sink in to the two figures.

"But if we do that, what will happen to the lake?" Walker asked.

Allanon's shade nodded.

–The lake will no longer exist as it does today with the power gone. As for the shades within, I do not know what will happen to them-

"But can't you see into the future?" Tai asked, again remembering of the past.

-I had tried, but it does not work. The future seems to be a blur. Although in many of the futures, there is only darkness-

_Only darkness...._"So, what do I have to do?" Tai asked again, becoming frightened at what he knew would come next.

-We will have to free it and you, Tai, will do it with your wishsong-

As Allanon spoke the words, Tai felt a sudden chill run up his back while he took in the words. An excitement also rose with the fear. He had waited a long time to use the wishsong usefully, not just for fun.

-Once I am back within the waters, use the wishsong to free the power and bring peace to the Four Lands. Whatever happens afterwards, it will have to be dealt with at that time-

All during this time, Allanon's shade had been losing strength and was now vanishing. The lake rippled, then became as fierce as it had when the shade had appeared. While Tai and Walker shielded their eyes, the once-Druid descended back into the waters with a final, reassuring nod to Tai.

Once the lake was again still, Walker spoke. "Do as Allanon says, Tai."

Tai, still miffed by Allanon's charge, did as he was told. He walked to the edge of the lake and began to build his magic and form it into a blue shard of fire. As he did, he felt something else giving him strength. He looked back at Walker for an answer, but the Druid stood stalk still, apparently not noticing that anything was wrong and nodded his encouragement to Tai. Tai turned back towards the lake and ignored the feeling as little more than his imagination. Again he formed the blue shard of fire. And again he was met by another power that strengthened him.

Finally his power reached its peak, and he let it go in a rush. The fire reached down towards the lake, splitting the great waters apart in a roar, then kept going. It broke apart the ground underneath while the earth trembled with the force. The earth shook and water sprayed everywhere. Out of nowhere a wind picked up, throwing the water and mud everywhere, plastering the two forms at the shore of the lake. Although the water was deadly to the touch, both men remained unharmed.

At the bottom of the lake, a strange orange fire began to meet Tai's. As the blue and red fire mixed, an explosion shook the area. Tai's endurance was at its peak while he tried to control the wishsong, his strength steadily failing, but he did not relent. Tremor after tremor shook the land, the wind picked up as well as it threw the water around the two unmoving figures on the shore.

Finally, one last explosion ended it all. Tai, now completely exhausted, gave one final strong cry, then ceased. He collapsed in a heap and everything went still. The waters calmed again and covered over the lake again except for a small part in the middle of the lake. The winds died down as well, creating an eerie feeling at their absence. Walker immediately bound over to the crumpled form of Tai to support him so that he could sit up.

Out of the lake rose a blinding light. Walker thought at first that it was the light he had witnessed in the battle with the Shadowen, but then threw away the idea. It was not the same. The light rose out of the lake and reduced in size. It rested on the shoreline just feet in front of Tai Ohmsford and Walker Boh. All around, forms began to materialise out on the shore. One by one they took on the forms of men and women dressed in cloaks. It only took seconds for it to happen.

_The Druids,_ Walker thought in complete bewilderment and excitement! They have come back to the world of man!

"What is happening?" Tai managed to ask.

"Since the power is gone, the Druids within the lake are being released...!" Walker responded.

The Druids were now completely solid, looking around in confusion. Many were calling out to others to see if they were there as well. The light was still at the shore, but dwindled in size. Allanon came out of the confused crowd along with Bremen and Galaphile. They stopped a few feet away, confusion mirrored on all of their faces.

Tai, gathering what was left of his strength, rose, with Walker to aid him. Tai walked slower towards the light with the Druids looking on. He had never seen anything so brilliant in his life! He reached out with his hand to touch it. As the tips of his fingers made contact with it, the light flared one final time, causing Tai and the Druids nearest to shield their eyes, then began to take form of a young female. She was dressed in very different clothing with a black bag with two straps attached to the back of it and a strange looking bow clutched in her hand. She just stood there, just staring at the hundreds of strange people before her with a look of equal surprise. Then she fell to her knees as her strength began to fail and Leo fell into darkness....


	4. Chapter Four

Disclaimer: I no own. Enough said.

A/N: One thing I believe I forgot to mention is that I started writing this when I was about 15 years old, so to tell you the truth, I'm reading this along with the rest of you. Eventually I'll catch up to where I left off and let's hope that my writing will see a marked improvement :)

* * *

The Druids stood still, still looking at the strange girl at the waterfront. The weather had returned to normal and all was still. The lake now looked like any other lake now with the magic out of it. A gentle breeze blew past and ruffled Tai's hair. He did not feel threatened like a few of the Druids were. Many were stepping away from the lake and the young girl, not knowing what to do.

Tai put out his hand and took hers. It felt like it had hardly any weight. She looked so frail and drained of energy. He tried to revive her, calling out to her and lightly shaking her. Nothing seemed to help. Finally Walker came over to check her. She seemed all right, but would need to rest for a while.

Galaphile and Bremen then spoke to the Druids, ordering them to Paranor. Then they all, with an unconscious youth in a stretcher, made the trek to Paranor.

They reached Paranor in a short two days. The new Druids, who then were informed of the past events, greeted them. Many of the Druids parted ways during the trek, knowing that Paranor would not have room for all of them. Only two hundred Druids remained, along with Allanon, Bremen, Galaphile, Walker, Tai, and the girl. Tai, who was still too weak, was escorted to a room in which he could rest. The girl, who was still unconscious, was treated in the same manner, but was locked in her room with a guard outside of the door just in case. Allanon stood with the guard for a while before retiring as well.

Leo woke up in the middle of the night with a headache and a strange buzzing in her ear. Her strength renewed, she lifted herself up and tried to make sense of what happened. She remembered her flight from the strange guy near her house, and then a bright light had taken her somewhere. After that she remembered a time on which she was waiting, but she did not know for how long. She remembered thinking to herself that she must be dead. For all she knew, it could have been a few seconds or.... She shook her, not even finishing the thought. Then she remembered waking up in front of many people at a shoreline, but then she figured that she passed out.

She looked around the room, trying to figure out where she was, but it looked as if she were in an old castle or something. _Why the hell am I in castle?_ She got up to find that the room was furnished with a few paintings of landscapes. A fire was lit on the far side of the room and a few candles were lit around the room to give light. _Don't they know what electricity is?_ If she didn't know better, she would say that she had gone back in time. But that was a stupid thought because that was impossible. So where was she? There were so many questions that she wanted to ask, but it looked like there was no one to answer them.

She looked around and spotted a door on at the end of her bed. She rose cautiously, still feeling a bit weak, and walked over to it. She heard a rustling of clothing on the other side of the door as the guard shifted his weight.

"Hello?" she asked tentatively. The person on the other side of the door immediately turned around to face her.

"Oh, you're awake." He seemed a bit nervous at finding her awake. "How do you feel?"

"A bit sore, but okay," she answered. "The door seems to be locked or something. Can you unlock it now?"

"Sorry, I can't. My orders are to keep you in there until morning," he said with a stern voice. "To tell you the truth," he added, "we didn't expect you to wake up until tomorrow at the earliest."

"You won't let me out? Who do you think you are? I want out. You can't keep me in here!" When there was no response, she began pounding on the door, panic beginning to rise in her. "Let me out! I want out! You can't do this! When I...." The threats were wasted on the guard who just turned around and ignored her. "You can't just ignore me! Believe me, I can make this the worst shift that you have ever had to cover!" Again, there was no response.

"Okay, fine." She took a deep breath and began to sing.

"Ninety-nine bottles of beer on the wall! Ninety-nine bottles of beer! Take one down; pass it around, ninety-eight bottles of beer on the wall! Ninety-eight bottles of beer on the wall! Ninety-eight bottles of beer! Take one down; pass it around, ninety-seven bottles of beer on the wall! Ninety-seven bottles of...." She kept going while the guard kept telling her to stop it, telling her that it was his orders.

Time went by slowly. "...One down, pass it around, seventy-six bottles of beer on the wall!" Time again went by, but Leo kept singing, even though she swore that this must have been annoying her more than the guard just outside the door. "Forty-two bottles of beer on the wall.... Forty-two bottles of beer.... Take one down, pass...."

"Alright, alright! I'll go talk to my commander! Just stop singing!" he finally gave in.

"Ya know, that was all I wanted," Leo replied with a grin. The guard replied with a groan and walked away.

Leo, now feeling much better, went over to an open window she had not seen before. The moon shone brightly and stars twinkled. She still did not know where she was, but she swore that she would get answers soon. But, she was definitely in a castle of some sort. She tried to figure out which one she was in, but could not. Her home was nowhere near one. She stood alone with her thoughts until a sharp knock at the door awoke her from them.

"Hello?" It was the guard. "Are you still there?"

"Ya, I'm still here. The doors locked, remember?" She rolled her eyes as she walked over to the door.

A new voice emerged from outside the door as the guard fumbled to unlock the door. "Did you sleep well?" The voice was of a man. She guessed that he was a bit older from the way he sounded, but his voice reassured her.

"Yes, but I had a tough time trying to persuade your guard to let me out of here." She could here the guard mutter under his breath about how she had done it. In reply, the stranger chuckled. As he did, the door swung open to reveal a man of about seventy to seventy-five years old with snow-white hair.

"My name is Bremen," he greeted. He held out his hand.

"Leo," she added coolly, clasping his hand in return. His hand felt like a stick that was going to snap any minute, showing his age. She took back her hand.

Three more people came through the doorway. One of them immediately caught her attention because of his height. He was about seven feet tall and Leo, who was five feet and short for her age, was put in his shadow, but she was not at all intimidated by this fact at all. He seemed to be about fifty years old with his hair already turning grey. Another man, a bit younger than the other, came through. She immediately saw that one of his arms was missing. He walked confidently over, but stopped short to wait for the other person to walk through.

The last one to walk through the door was a youth, probably about the same age as her. Leo had to admit that he was kind of cute with his wavy, dirty-blonde hair and his slim features. But something was not right.... Leo looked closer and saw that his eyebrows were pointed upwards. His ears also caught her eye, which were pointed a bit as well.

Her face became a mask of confusion. "Who are you?" first addressing the youth, then the others. She shifted her eyes from one to the other.

Bremen was the one to speak up. "This is Allanon," he introduced the tall man first. "Walker Boh." Bremen pointed towards the other senior in the group. "And, finally, this is Tai Ohmsford." Bremen pointed to the youth that now was staring out the window, trying to not seem interested.

"My name is Leo. Leo Maylon." She extended her hand to the men who took it firmly, but when she showed it to Tai, he shrugged disinterestedly and turned away and then continued to stare out the window.

"Do you know where you are?" Walker Boh asked, giving Tai a stern look, but again he ignored the other.

"Um, not exactly. Well, not...at all..." she confessed. _Good question._

"You are at Paranor," Walker responded, obviously assuming that she knew of it.

"Paranor? Where's or _what's_ that?" She felt that familiar terror creeping up inside of her. _Paranor? _Where was she?

Allanon finally spoke up after seeing that the others would not. "Do remember how you got here?" He now seemed at least a bit friendly instead of the forbidding figure that he had made himself out to be in the beginning. He noted at how little she knew on the matter, even though she was at the middle of it.

Leo thought for a moment, collecting her thoughts. So much of it was a blur to her. She tried to remember anyway. "Well, I had been shopping downtown... in Tondya," she added when their faces showed their confusion. But it didn't seem to help, so she added, "It's a city." When their faces became even more confused, probably because they did not know where the city was, she continued with a sigh. "Anyway, I was walking through the city when my friends and I saw this guy walking down the street. I mind as well say that he was handsome in an odd way. I, uh, then, kinda got a bit scared. I don't know why I was. It was just this feeling. And then he chased me, but I got away." She stopped to study the faces on the men, who were now closely listening to the strange story. Even Tai, who had stopped looking out the window for the moment.

She continued her narration, her forehead furrowed as she tried to concentrate. She felt embarrassed at telling them about her fear, but for some reason she felt that she owed them the whole truth. "When I was walking through a creek valley towards my house, he appeared out of nowhere. I don't know how he found me, but he did. We began to fight, but he kind of over-powered me. I felt something else inside of me. It was...like a power I had never felt before. After that, all I remember was that a storm came out of nowhere, and the earth seemed to move. The next thing I knew, the man was on the ground on fire. After that, nothing except this light." She ended the narration at that.

"Do you remember anything after that?" Tai asked out of the blue.

"Well," she tried to remember again, "I remember waiting for a while, then all of a sudden I was on this lake shore." She looked over to Tai, seeing him for the first time. "You were there." Leo paused, studying Tai. "I guess I passed out after that."

There was an awkward Bremen spoke up, eyeing her backpack. "What's in there?"

Leo walked over to her pack, which was propped up against the bed and zipped it open. She shuffled around the contents inside and brought them out. She found her CD Walkman with all of her CD's. There was a bit of money as well. "This is all there is in here." She looked around, seeing that something was missing. "By the way, did you find a bow? It's my brother's."

"We have your brother's bow in the armoury." Allanon turned toward the guard who was just outside the door and asked him to get it.

Leo walked over to the window once more. She began to wonder where she was in the world. Or when she was. She did not even know if it was the year two thousand anymore. "What year is it?" she blurted out, not even thinking what the question could mean. Her voice caught in her throat as she choked out the words.

"What do you mean?" Tai questioned.

"She means," Walker explained, "how long was she sealed within the Valley of Shale."

"Leo," Bremen started, "you have been kept within a lake for many years. Your spirit anyway. We are not really sure how long you were there, but it has been close to 3,000 to 3,500 years."

She continued to stare out the window. "This can't be real," she whispered. "This can't be real!" she screamed.

Leo bolted out the door past the four surprised men. Down the hall, she bumped into the guard. She shoved past and made her way down a flight of stairs. Leo scrambled down many flights of stairs and down hallways, just trying to find a way out of this place. Leo felt her eyed overflow with tears of anger and confusion. Another flight of stairs loomed up ahead of her. Stumbling down them, she made her way to the ground level. A few men saw her run out the main doors and called out to her to stop, but they mind as well have been mute.

Leo ran down a beaten path to a pair of iron gates up ahead of her, but they were locked. She looked around for another way out. Behind her she saw Tai running swiftly towards her. Behind him, about three hundred feet, were the other men. Leo looked up to the top of the gates, which were about twenty feet high. She was always good at climbing. Getting a grip on the smooth, cold iron, Leo began to climb them. As she reached the top, Tai caught up to her.

"What do you think you are doing?" he asked harshly as he motioned the others to not approach him. Allanon was about to object, but Bremen silenced him.

"What do you think I'm doing? I'm getting out of here and back to my real life with real people and...." Leo stopped with a shudder as a wind blew past her, bringing with it a nightly chill.

"Where are you going to go?"

"Back to my life!" she yelled back as the wind picked up.

Tai looked around in a circle, apparently looking for something. "Which way is that?"

It suddenly dawned on Leo that she had no idea which direction to go to reach Tondya. She buried her head in the crook of her arm, feeling more alone than ever.

"Maybe I could help you find your way." Tai knew that he was making a promise that he knew he was probably not going to be able to keep, but he hated the idea of her outside, alone on a cool night like this.

Leo closed her eyes, torn between the decisions. She could climb over the top of the gate and leave this madness behind or stay behind and see what happens. Leo was terrified of the latter because of what Bremen of what Bremen had said about her being 3,017 to 3,517 years old. She chuckled nervously a bit at the concept. There was truth in his words and Leo was frightened at what it meant. It meant that her family and friends had long since passed away and that she would never see them again. Her plans for the future were in ruins. Leo's life, if Bremen was right, was completely destroyed. All of this had started with that guy chasing her.... What she wanted to know was who he was, but now that seemed impossible since he would have passed away along with everyone else.

A tear rolled down her cheek as she considered the possibilities. Walker Boh walked up to the gate. "Tai is right. We will try to help in anyway that we can," he said sincerely. Leo looked down at him, then to Allanon and Bremen who nodded their agreement.

New hope began to rise in Leo. Maybe they could help her. Maybe they could find a way bring her home. It was a hopeless thought, but she still clung onto it and lowered herself to the ground. The other four walked up to her cautiously, probably expecting her to bolt again.

Leo raised her eyebrow in speculation. "When do we start?"

After the night's events, Leo was escorted to her room and was granted an unlocked door, but a guard was always present just outside the door. Leo had found the original guard after returning to the castle and was given her brother's bow. Before going back to bed, she fingered the smooth surface, wondering how her brother was, or what his life was like. She imagined that her disappearance created quite a shock to the school after the fire at the school. Her parents along with her brother probably reported her missing to the police. They had probably made a search for her, but obviously had not found her. How her family and friends must have felt. Leo's life was not the only one that had been changed. But she knew that they had gone on with their lives. That, at least, comforted her. Leo fell asleep thinking of her family.

She was gently shaken awake by gentile hands in the late morning by someone. Leo, who was used to sleeping in, replied with a groan and threw the covers over her head. In return, she was greeted by a familiar chuckle.

Again she groaned as everything came back to her. All Leo wanted to do was roll into a cocoon and go back to sleep to forget what the day before had revealed. Again her shoulder was shook by the man. "Bremen," she whined as she pushed back the covers so she could get a look at him. He seemed to look younger somehow. "Haven't you people ever heard of beauty sleep? It's vital to a teenager." Leo pulled the covers back over her head.

"Oh, I think you can manage," was his reply.

"Alright! I'll get up! Sheesh!" Leo pushed back the covers again and looked down at herself and noticed that she was wearing a nightgown. She remembered changing out of her clothes the night before. Scanning the room, she spotted her clothes hanging off of a chair. "Would you mind throwing my clothes over here?"

"I think these old bones can manage that," he replied with a grin. Bremen picked up her clothes and tossed them to her. "I even cleaned them for you. Seems I can do something around here."

She looked at him with confusion. "Thanks, but what do you mean?"

"Ah, they're not letting me do too much around here. Seems they think I'm too old to be useful. Ha! I'd like to see their faces when I fought the Warlock Lord. That would shut them up." At Leo's puzzled face, Bremen added, "Another time. For now, you had better get changed. The Druids are holding a meeting in a couple hours. You might want to get washed up, too. If you need anything else, just ask the guard outside the door."

"Thanks." Leo watched Bremen leave the room. She found herself liking him. He reminded her of one of her neighbours on her street. He had been old like Bremen and had his personality. She had been very close to him as well....

She quickly changed into her clothes and then asked the guard to show her to a room where she was greeted with a warm bath. After her bath, Leo dressed back into her clothes. The guard then brought her back to her room to wait for someone to come get her. While waiting, she started playing with her hair.

Leo only had to wait half an hour before Allanon entered the room. He was dressed in a dark grey cloak that covered his entire body. He seemed to be more forbidding than ever, but Leo, once more, was not frightened by his appearance.

"It's time to meet the council," he said darkly.

"Hello to you, too," Leo said sarcastically. Allanon's eyes narrowed a bit. Leo, in turn, rolled hers. She had already made up her mind that she did not like Allanon. She especially hated his quick temper and seriousness. Leo sighed, then replied, "Show me."

Leo walked behind Allanon through the ancient castle. Looking at the worn walls reminded Leo of a tower that her family and her had taken a tour of in Italy. What was it called again? Along the way, she saw many of the so-called Druids that Bremen had told her about. A few of them looked like Tai with their sharp features except they were more prominent. Leo saw many other men and women who caught her eye. There were a few that were dwarfed in size and were built and stocky. Others were also short, but not quite as built. Their strange characteristic was their yellowish skin.

_Cool make-up. They look like my dad's lawn gnomes!_

Then she saw another form that at first looked like a statue made of rock, but then she saw it move. Leo gasped and jumped back in fright. Never before had she seen anything so big and surprising. Without even realising it, she had coward behind Allanon, hiding herself from the thing. Allanon turned around at her quick movements with a dark face at her impoliteness, but his face softened as he saw the frightened features of her face. With a firm hand on her shoulder, but surprisingly gentle one, Allanon led her over to the creature that was now looking over at her with a curious stare.

Allanon looked down on the young girl. "I guess you are not used to Trolls. This is one of them. They mainly live far up in the northern land, but lately they have been moving south to join the other races." The Troll extended his hand in greeting with which Leo took with a bit of caution. The Troll grinned a bit at her hesitation. The skin felt so rough and leathery in hers. With that, the Troll left them to finish his chore on the far side of the room.

"Troll? What are you talking about, Allanon? Are you saying that Trolls exist?" Leo shook her head in disbelief, still watching the massive creature on the far side of the room.

"That is exactly what I am saying. You are probably wondering what happened to your world. From what we know, there were many huge wars around your time. We now call these the Great Wars. Men, at that time, were petty and wanted to control the world. Your time was one of great mistakes, ones that we have learned from and now avoid. They seemed to have gone mad...." All this time, Leo's short temper had been building up like a balloon and was about to pop. "Men, at that time had wanted power more than anything...."

Leo had heard enough and stepped in front of Allanon before he could say anymore about her so-called "horrible world." "Don't you dare say that about where I come from! You have no right to make those accusations! I can't believe you. Do you really think that we were just fools and power-hungry people? You make it out to sound like we were animals with no hearts at all! Don't you ever reduce my land and... family... like that again!" All during this outburst, Allanon's face remained a blank. He just stood there with a blank expression and pushed past her. Leo walked after him while her temper cooled down. She had to remember to control her temper, but Allanon just seemed to trigger it. From the look in his eyes, it seemed that not many people defied his opinions too often. Well, she would be the first!

As they approached the room in which the council was seated, a guard walked over to Allanon and informed them to wait for the council to be ready for them and showed them where they could sit down. Both of them sat in chairs that faced each other. Leo folded her arms in front of her. She knew that she was being stubborn. Leo started reflecting about what she had said to the tall man across from her and realised that she had not been at all fair to him. Allanon had just told her on what he had been taught. She could not judge him on that. Besides, he was trying to teach Leo something and she had jumped down his throat without a second thought. He didn't really know any better, not being from that time and all.

Leo sighed with resignation and lowered her gaze towards the floor, knowing that she had to say something in the dead silence. "Alright, I'm sorry, if that makes you feel any better. But you have to remember where I'm coming from. I just learned that all the people that I have ever met are now dead. It's like me telling me that all my memories of my friends ...and family... are... horrible." Allanon started with these words. He obviously had not thought much about his. "If there really was a war, then it had to have been a huge one." Leo looked questioningly over at Allanon then went on to ask, "You said that the wars back then were called the great wars. How many of them were there and what were they like?"

Allanon paused, gathering his thoughts. He did not know the details to a great extent, but he did know something of them. "Well, the first was a war where many died. It was said to have been a war where the whole world was involved. They say that millions lost their lives in that one war."

"Over seventy million...." Allanon looked over at her with surprise as she said this. "If you're talking about the war I think you're talking about, then it was called World War I. It happened about seventy years before I was born. What other wars were there?" Leo wondered if he knew about World War II.

"Well, there was another after this one. It was said that a madman was behind it, embarrassed of his land's defeat in the first war, or as you call it, World War I. Many lost their lives in this war as well."

Leo nodded her head. "This 'madman's' name was Adolf Hitler. My grandfather had served in that war. Luckily he made it out with his life. The only major injury that he got during the war was his arm was amputated. He was hit by a blast from the other army. I guess his arm was mangled then." She felt pride in telling the story, knowing that her grandfather had helped in bringing peace to her country. Noticing Allanon's intense interest, she added that she would fill him in on the details of the two wars.

"Anyway, there was one more war that ended life on earth. This war completely whipped out life. This war also was said have been a war where the whole world had been involved. In this war, they say that billions had died in the matter of a few days." Leo let out a gasp of surprise. No war had been this bad. "After the war, there was said to have been some form of radiation that changed the appearances of many people who had survived. For one, that Troll's ancestors had been made that way. Do you remember those others that we saw as we walked here? The ones that looked yellow had been affected by the radiation a bit, but not nearly as much as the Trolls had. They stayed in the forests until they finally came out of hiding. They are known as Gnomes." Leo giggled a bit at this remark, finding it a bit amusing. "Were there Gnomes back in your time?" Allanon said, seeing Leo's face at hearing the name.

"No, but they were a fictional creature in my time. My dad used to have lawn ornaments that were Gnomes." Allanon grinned a bit at this.

"Anyway, there were others that were formed in the years following this war. They are known as the Dwarves. They are the other short ones that we saw when we were walking here." Leo could not stop her sides from shaking anymore. She burst out laughing, unable to do anything else. "The Dwarfs were named after a fictional creature in your time as well. Men, like you and me, still exist as you can see. The race of Man survived as well."

As Leo forced herself to stop laughing, she noticed that he had left out the people with the sharp features. "Hey, what about the people with the funny looking ears and eyebrows? Were they affected by the radiation as well?"

"No. They have been around since the beginning of this world." Leo looked up at Allanon with curiously. "In your time, they existed, but they never let humans see them. They have been in hiding for millenniums. Only after the Great Wars did they come out of hiding and let themselves be known."

"So you're saying that even in my time they existed and no one knew about them?" How could that be possible? Surely someone must have seen one somewhere.

"Exactly. They are known as the Elves." Leo thought about their strange characteristics. They fitted the description of the legendary creatures.

"Wow. So I guess some people did actually see them. There had been a few people that said that elves exist, but no one believed them. That's kind of ironic." Elves. Who would have known?

"Um, Allanon. There is just one more question that I have."

"What is that?" Allanon had obviously thought that he had answered all of her questions about the past.

"What killed all of those people in the final war?" Leo braced herself as she guessed the answer.

"They say that many explosions whipped out the people. They were described as looking like mushrooms...."

At hearing the description, Leo sank to the floor, overwhelmed with emotion. After all of the world's efforts to stop a nuclear war from happening, it finally did like a ticking time bomb. Allanon knelt down beside her and slipped an arm around her quivering form. A tear trickled down her cheek as she thought that Allanon had had it right before. Man had been petty and stupid. Allanon... had been right.


	5. Chapter Five

Disclaimer: I no own

* * *

A few minutes went by before the doors to the meeting room opened up, revealing Walker who beckoned for them to enter. Leo whipped her eyes before entering, not wanting anyone to know that she had been crying. She hated for anyone to see her weakness. Leo had a strong pride and was not about to change that fact.

Walker brought Leo to a chair situated near the end of the table in the ancient meeting room. The room was filled with a musty smell that caused Leo to wrinkle her nose at. The forbidding form of Allanon took a seat next to her, keeping his face a blank. Walker then himself took a seat at the end of the table. Many others were already seated along the table. Tai was seated at the other end of the table, looking around at all the strange faces with curiosity. He looked over at slim figure across from him and smiled in greeting. Leo returned the smile, happy to see a familiar face. Leo now recognised the Trolls, Dwarves, Gnomes, and Elves. Upon looking at the strange figures of Dwarves and Gnomes, Leo giggled a bit, but was silenced by a jab by Allanon's elbow into her rib cage and a dark look that demanded that she behave herself. Apparently this was not a laughing matter.

"My friends," Walker began, "something extremely remarkable has happened. The power that has kept the Druids of old in the Hadeshorn is now released. We did not know the source of this power until now." He looked over at Leo. Leo became suddenly aware that all of the other Druids had followed his gaze to her. Leo shifted uncomfortably at the sudden attention towards her. "Leo, here, was the source. She has been sealed away for hundreds of years. Probably since the time of the Great Wars." A murmur went out from the men and women at the table. Leo thought briefly of Allanon's description of the last war, but quickly put the thought aside. This was not the time to think about it.

"For unknown reasons, Leo was sealed there. And before any of you ask, Leo, like us, does not know very much about this matter. She may know even less." Walker turned his attention to Leo once more. "I have already told them on what you know of how you came here. You also told us that there was a man that had chased you. Do you know anything about him or what he wanted?"

"Well, no," was her answer.

"Could you describe him?" a man across from her asked. Leo inspected him for a couple minutes and realised that she had seen him at the shore at the Hadeshorn.

"Well, besides that he a bit handsome," a couple laughed at this comment, "he was really strong. It was like he wasn't even human. When…we were fighting, I kicked him in the leg, but it was like he had not even felt it. After that, a storm and an earthquake came out of nowhere. Oh, and a flood started, too. I felt something inside…. It's kind of hard to describe it. What ever it was, I couldn't control it. It came out of me before I could stop it. The next thing I knew was that he was on the ground on fire and then this light…." Leo trailed off, not knowing what to say next. Repeating the tale just confused her even more. She knew that the story sounded impossible, but for some reason it did not to them. All they did was nod their heads with understanding, a couple of them conversing with others next to them.

"Did he use magic?" This question again came from a Troll directly across from her.

"Magic? What do you mean magic? Magic doesn't exist." Leo looked around at the faces of each Druid and found out that many were grinning or trying to control their laughter. "Wait a minute. Are you trying to tell me that magic exists? Do you have any idea how crazy that sounds?"

Another speaker, this time a Dwarf, rose up at that time. "I guess magic did not exist in your time or you know about it. We are aware that your time was a time of science and technology. You should know that in this time, the sciences have been replaced by magic." The speaker sat back down. Magic replaced science?

"So, you guys don't use science, but you use magic. My science teacher would love to here you explain that. In fact, I'd love it if you explained it to me." Magic? They had to be kidding!

"Magic is very real. Right after the wars, magic emerged. We are not really sure how, but it did. Science is still practised, but magic is now the major influence in the world," he answered back.

Leo looked down onto the table and closed her eyes, trying unsuccessfully to make sense out of all of this. Magic? "But magic is just something that little kids are told about for their amusement. They are in fairy tales and legends that we all eventually grow out of believing in," she muttered to herself.

Allanon, who was the only one who had heard, responded. "This not a game. You may not be totally aware of this, but you possess strong magic. I do not know why this is, but you have it. Actually, I have never seen magic that strong besides Tai's and maybe his ancestors' along with a few rare people. We called this meeting to figure out what to do next and where we will go to settle this."

Then Leo realised something that was hidden in his words. "You mean what to do with me." Leo looked over at Allanon with accusing eyes.

"I didn't say that."

"But you meant it anyway. You've never had to deal with something like this before and you don't know what to do. You just want to put me somewhere quiet so that I can live out the rest of my life." She paused and looked around the room. "Well, am I right?" The rest of the room stayed quiet, confirming her accusations. "Well, I'm sorry that I wasted your precious time." Leo got up to leave when she noticed Bremen coming into the room.

"Wait a minute, Leo," he said. The old man walked towards Walker and pulled him aside to speak with him privately.

With a nod of agreement, Walker rose and faced Leo. "Bremen will look after to you and deal with your situation. He might be able to make more sense out of this than I can. Maybe they can even find a way to help you find some answers. I told you that night that we would help in any way that we can."

"So, you really will help me?" She turned towards Bremen who gave her a quick, genuine smile. That was all she needed.

Out of the blue, Tai spoke up. "Well, if you're going on a trip, I guess I'll come along. I don't have that much to do anyway." Walker grinned at Tai's masked enthusiasm. He was not going along just for a trip. Whether he knew it or not, he was attracted to Leo.

"Well," Allanon said, "then I guess I will go with you. Walker doesn't seem to need any help around here." Leo silently groaned a bit at having the serious Druid along for the trip, even though she was grateful for his compassion out in the waiting room.

"Alright. We will discuss where we will be going later," Bremen said. "I don't know about any of you, but I am starting to get a bit hungry. This meeting is over." With nodes from everyone around the table, everyone filed out of the room.

So, after the meeting, Leo, Tai, Allanon, and Bremen talked over where their next move would outside the castle. Leo, who knew nothing of this world, stayed out of it the talking part, but tried to make sense out of what they were talking about. She would nod a few times, but she hardly knew what was being discussed. She caught a few words like Rainbow Lake, Callahorn, and so on. She heard much talk of the Hadeshorn, but was still miffed by their discussion. Finally, Allanon mentioned an ancient city that was in ruins. Leo asked about it, but they did not seem to hear her, so they kept talking. Finally she gave up and walked a few yards away from the men. She fished out her Walkman from her backpack and put a CD into it. Her finger slipped on the smooth surface of the Walkman and she accidentally set the switch on radio. She heard static, but out of the blue she heard someone speaking….

_What in the world? No radio station could still be sending out signals anymore!_ She adjusted the knob until the frequency was the best that she could get it, although the signal was still staticy, she could still make out the words. "… Possible emergency. Citizens are… To stay calm and head… Shelter. A bomb shelter is prefera…. If you cannot find a bomb shelter, head to your basement or…. Again there is only a warning…." She kept listening to the broadcast as it repeated itself over and over again. Then the signal went staticy again, so much that she could not make out the words anymore. Leo looked around at the others who were now staring at her, concern mirrored on their faces.

"What's wrong?" Tai finally asked.

Leo took off her headphones and looked down at them. What had just happened? "I don't know. I just got a signal from a radio station." The other night Leo had tried to explain what a radio was to all of them when they had seen her listening to her CD Walkman, although they still did not understand that much, but they got the main idea. She had finally given up and told them it was magic. "It was broadcasting a warning, but I don't really know what was the danger. It said that people should go to their basements… or bomb shelters…." Suddenly she got the idea. Allanon had said before that there had been nuclear bombs that had destroyed the world. So that must have been a warning for a city! Leo shook her head and explained her thoughts to the men who were still baffled at her gesture to the Walkman.

"So that had to have happened before the explosions started had hit," Allanon said, taking in the news and only imagining the fear that must have been going through the minds of all those people. He secretly trembled at the thought of all those who had lost their lives so many years ago. Many had died in the War of the Races, but not anywhere close to that. The Great Wars had been a blood bath and the human race had almost been completely destroyed by its need for power and others had been driven forth by their confusion, greed, and fear of annihilation. So much death….

"No, that city had not been hit." The statement was so blunt that everyone looked over at her in surprise. "If the city had been hit, it would have been levelled. There would be no signal from that city then."

Leo walked a few more yards from them, facing away from the men gathered around her and stared out at the trees surrounding Paranor. She had explored the forest the previous day and had found a little brook embedded deep within it. Trees grew all along the water with a motion of tranquillity. She remembered the smell of the crisp, clean air as it soothed her tortured soul and the sound of the water trickling downstream and the songbirds in the trees singing her a chorus songs. She felt so peaceful there among nature and now longed for that feeling again. The pain of knowing what had happened to her world…

Leo hung her head low, feeling the wind pick up to a gentle breeze. It was not fair! Why did her world have to be destroyed? She almost wished that she could have stayed in her time, even though she probably would not have survived. It wouldn't have mattered. All that mattered was her family. She missed her grandparents commenting on how much she had grown, how her brother always teased her about her height, how her mother would come home from work and cook supper along with her father, who would barbecue. She even grinned a bit at the memory when her father had tried to build a workshop out in the backyard and the very next day it toppled over when a strong wind blew it down. Her family would always say that the big, bad wolf huffed and puffed and blew the workshop down!

Leo returned to the present and looked again at the others waiting for her to speak. She cleared her throat and asked, "Where is the closest city to here? I mean, one that would have survived the Great Wars." She looked from one to the other, looking for her answer she knew that someone must know.

"There are only two, maybe three cities that are still standing. Two are to the east. One is not that far. It would be a few days walk. The other would be a few weeks walk," Allanon replied.

"Alright, then the signal would probably be coming from the closest city."

"The only problem is that there is something that lives there. A few men from a long time had met up with it and two of them had almost lost their lives." He said this with such venom at remembering his failure in protecting the two young Valemen that were the victims, one of whom was Shea Ohmsford. If Shea had died, the whole trip would have been worthless. Although, at the time, no Druids had been with them, so I believe that this being should not prove to be too dangerous with all of us together."

"Then we will have to gather our supplies," Tai said, finally entering the conversation.

"We will leave tomorrow at dawn. Better rest today so that all of you will be fresh for the long hike. We'll take four horses with us as well." With that, the four broke up into two groups. Bremen and Allanon, and Tai and Leo. The former walked back to Paranor to get everything ready for the trek. The latter walked off into the forest with Leo's insistence of showing Tai the brook she had found.

They walked in silence, Tai looking briefly at Leo when he thought she wasn't paying attention. She noticed every look.

Tai finally broke the uncomfortable silence. "What was your time like? I mean, I know it was a time of science, but what were the people like?"

Leo looked over at him as though he had just asked the dumbest question; then changed her mind as she saw that he was asking a serious question. "Well, they were like any that exist today. I don't really see a difference in them. You have to remember that it wasn't really man that had changed, it was their way of learning and teaching." She looked over at him to see if he understood what she was saying. "We aren't the people that Allanon described. At least, not exactly. It was only corrupt leaders and governments that started the wars. What? You don't seriously think that we were all 'greedy, power driven people', do you?" she added in a sarcastic, mocking voice.

"That's what I've been told." He said it so suddenly without even thinking that she did not reply.

They finally reached the brook. Tai stopped just as they were entering the area while Leo kept going and found a large boulder to sit on near the water. She dipped her fingers into the clear waters and swirled them around. Tai walked over to her and took a seat next to her.

"I miss them, you know," Leo said out of the blue. "My family and friends, but mostly my family. I guess my brother would have had to have bought a new bow…."

Tai looked at Leo's face as I he were seeing her for the first time. She didn't look upset, just sad at thinking of her memories. His thoughts drifted to his mother. He missed her, too. When she had passed away a few years ago, he had regretted to have never talked to her as much as he should have. Tai had never had a strong bond between them. She was more of a teacher than a mother to him. After all, she was the one that nurtured his gift, or curse that he so often referred it to as. They had often had arguments over which the wishsong was or could be. He suddenly felt very alone and wanting to have those familiar arguments. His eyes glazed over at the thought and turned away so that Leo would not see.

The girl looked over as he turned away. "Walker told me the story about you and the wishsong. About how you've had ever since you were a child and how your mother helped you develop it."

He looked sharply over at her. "Did he also tell you that my mother died?"

"Um, no…I'm sorry to hear that." His question was so unexpected that she didn't know what to say.

"Ya, well, she did." He turned away again, but not quickly enough for her to not see his eyes that gave him away.

"Look, I didn't mean anything. Walker only told me about…" Before she could say anything more, she caught a shadow moving off behind Tai. She pulled Tai's sleeve, putting her finger over his mouth, indicating for him to not talk. She pointed to where she had seen the shadow. Tai looked over, not picking up anything. He shook his head after a minute when nothing happened.

"Nothing's there. What did you…?" He didn't even finish the sentence as a huge creature came into the clearing. A moor cat! But Walker didn't have one anymore. This one must be wild! Moor cats usually didn't come up to humans so boldly. They did not usually hunt them, so why was this one so close?

Leo had never seen one before. It was even bigger than a lion. It had a greyish-black coat with big cat's eyes peering at them curiously. Leo tried to stand up, ready to run for the safety of the castle, but Tai held her down, knowing that it was a foolish thing to upset a moor cat. From the way it was moving, it looked as if it were hunting. The best thing to do was to stay a still as possible in a time like this.

After the initial shock wore off Leo, she sized up the big animal, praying for it to go away. As if in response the moor cat looked back at her and sat on its haunches. Tai now looked at the cat in surprise. The cat had gone from a hunting stance to sitting in a matter of seconds. Tai looked over at Leo, who was concentrating on the animal in front of them, obviously just as surprised as he was, but she wasn't nervous. How could she not be? He certainly was! It took all of his courage to keep from bolting through the woods.

Leo, again, looked at the massive animal. It really was beautiful when she took a longer look at it. For the first time, she noticed a small, white mark on the forehead. It almost looked like a star. Seeing that the cat wasn't about to leave, Leo got her courage together and urged Tai to walk over to it with her. Tai obeyed, not even knowing why he was about to risk his life to say hello to a cat! But he followed her anyway.

Slowly, step-by-step, Leo approached to cat, keeping her breathing at a slow, steady pace, stepping over rocks and twigs. She was mesmerized by the beast's eyes, which she continued to hold. Finally, she was a foot in front of it.

They stared at each other as if in a trance, the cat becoming edgy at her approach. Out of nowhere, Leo began to hum a melody. The huge cat's shoulders relaxed at the sound of her voice. Her voice was kept flawless as she continued to hum the strange song. Stretching out her hand, she slowly closed the distance between them. The cat was startled by this and backed off, growling lowly at the movement.

Tai, noticing the danger, began to use the wishsong to create peaceful pictures in the cat's mind. Leo looked over at him in surprise. She had never heard the wishsong before and was startled by its beauty. Noticing that the cat had once again settled down, she again reached out her fingers to touch the muzzle lightly, so lightly that the cat barely felt them, all the while keeping still and calm, matching Tai's song. The cat replied with a barely audible purr. Leo began stroking the silky fur and the purrs intensified. The cat leaned into her hand, thoroughly enjoying itself.

Leo looked over her shoulder at Tai in wonder. He slowly let the wishsong fizzle out as Leo beckoned him to join her. He slowly reached out with his own hand and began stroking the animal as well.

Leo glanced over to Tai, who gave her a smile and laugh. She returned the smile. Then she got an idea. She looked off a few hundred feet to where there was a big clearing. With a grin of mischief, she took off at a trot, glancing back at the two that just stared after her as if she had gone crazy. Picking up on the idea, the moor cat gave chase playfully, bounding after the girl across the clearing. Tai, who was still surprised, gave a whoop and sprinted off after the moor cat and gave chase after Leo.

All day, the three played and relaxed by the small brook and by the end of the day, the moor cat followed the two back home to Paranor.


	6. Chapter Six

Disclaimer: I own nada

A/N: Sorry for not updating in a while. Exams and all, though I'm glad I survived them. I hope you enjoy this next chapter. Have a happy holidays!!!

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The sun was just touching the sleeping hills as the four travellers, and moor cat, saddled up their horses and waved good-bye to the Druids that had come out to see them off. Tai looked back on the castle one last time, wondering again why he was still continuing this journey. 

He looked over at Leo, who was sitting behind Bremen on his horse with her horse tied to the saddle of Allanon's horse. Apparently, she didn't know how to ride a horse, and was also terrified of them. Leo turned towards him and saw his amused grin. She just shook her head and gave him a look that just dared him to speak. Tai just chuckled and knew exactly why he was still on the journey. Besides not knowing what else to do, he felt that she may need him at some point. There was no reason for this feeling, it just came to him and he was surprised at it. He had absolutely no ties with this girl, yet he couldn't leave. Maybe she would supply him with some answers to so many of the questions he had.

His thoughts quickly turned towards his life in Hearthstone… and to his mother. He could still remember the day that she died. It wasn't that she was ill or anything. He almost wished that that had been the end for her. Instead, he had found her in the woods….

"_Mother, where are you going?" asked a twelve-year-old Tai as he stared after his mother as she walked out the door, carrying her favourite sword with her and a couple throwing knives. She had a worried expression on her face and it frightened him. He had never seen her like this before and it was odd that she would be going out into a storm for a mere walk with weapons in hand._

"_I'm just going out to check on something in the woods. I'll be back for dinner. Would you mind making it?" Her smile was mixed with sadness and fake enthusiasm. Again, his twelve-year-old mind reeled with the possibilities. What could she be so worried about?_

"_Can I go with you?" Tai asked, wanting to make sure that she was okay. The storm clouds were getting pretty close and he didn't want her to get stuck out there alone._

_She shook her head and gave a reassuring smile. She hated leaving him because she knew what was coming. The Grimpond had foretold her that danger was coming into the valley. More to the point, it was coming for Tai. But, the Grimpond told her that there was a way in saving her son…. But why did it have to be this hard? She looked back at Tai, who looked indecisive as to follow his mother's wishes or not. He had always been headstrong and would shrug aside her orders easily enough. She just prayed that for once, he would follow her wish. Her last wish._

_Just as she was turning to leave, Tai ran up to her and wrapped his arms around her. She looked down at him, already feeling her resolve crumbling. She couldn't just leave him like this!_

"_Listen, Tai, if I'm not back for supper, I want you to go to Culhaven. From there you should get someone to escort you to Shady Vale. Do you understand?" She looked deep into his eyes, hoping that he wouldn't try to follow her._

_But to her surprise, Tai just nodded his head and muttered a response. He then let his mother go and watched as she started to go out the door once more. "Bye mother."_

"_Good-bye son. I love you." With that, she sprinted off into the woods._

_It had been a while since his mother had gone out. Tai really didn't know why he just let her go out like that. Maybe it had something to do with the look in her eyes. Or maybe it was the tone in her voice. Whatever it was, it told him that this was very important to her._

_Tai, noting what time it was, walked over to the kitchen and began chopping up some meat and vegetables like his mother had told him to. She would be home. He really had no reason to not believe so. She was extremely good with her swordsmanship, so there wouldn't be a problem. He even remembered when a moor cat with foam coming out of its mouth had attacked him. His mother had come to save him by killing it with her sword._

_Tai looked outside again. She should be back soon; the sun was almost down. Setting aside the stew he had made, he went about his evening chores, still wondering about why she would say for him to go to Culhaven if she didn't come back…. Suddenly he understood._

"_Mother!"_

_He raced out of the house, heading in the direction he had seen his mother go off into. How could she do this to him? He could have helped her in some way and she had known it. The wishsong was more powerful than any sword and knives. Mother…._

_Picking up his pace, he looked left and right for any sign of her. The storm was just about on top of the valley and if he didn't hurry, he would lose all the signs of her passing. He finally found the path she had taken. From the way she was moving, it was almost as if she were stalking something. But what?_

_Suddenly the clouds let loose and her trail was swept away. Tai cried out in protest. Now he would not be able to find her! He stumbled on, looking futilely for anything to point him in the right direction. He looked for what seemed like hours, but was actually just a few minutes. Finally, another idea came into his head. The wishsong!_

_Concentrating on his mother's face, he sought her out among the trees. Suddenly, a blue light streaked out to the left of him. Not even thinking, he plunged ahead, hurtling over rocks and fallen logs. He fell twice, but always jumped right back up._

_Finally he came to a clearing with a cliff on one side of it. The clearing was singed and brown with trees uprooted and standing on end. This must be where she is! Searching with his elven eyes, he spotted a strange form to the right of him. Walking quietly over, he peered at it curiously. It was hideous. It was human shaped, but twisted and changed beyond recognition. Through its chest was his mother's sword._

_Looking around again for his mother, he saw another form on the other side of the clearing. Racing over to it, he finally found who he was looking for._

_Kneeling down beside her, he found gashes and blood covering her body. He wasn't sure if it was hers or not. Taking his fingers, he picked up her hand, knowing without even thinking what he would find, or not find. Placing his fingers on her frail wrist, he searched for a pulse, but couldn't find one. He buried his face in her hand, letting the sobs flow out of him. If only he had gotten to her sooner._

If only he had gotten to her sooner, she would still be alive. He had rerun that day over and over in his mind. It haunted him and he never had a night's rest from the nightmares.

That was why he came on this trip. To find out who had killed his mother. Although the demon-like being had been killed by his mother, he still felt that there must be more to it than that. Also, he wanted to help Leo. Maybe to redeem himself for not being there for his mother. Looking over at Leo, who was still clinging onto Bremen for dear life, he made a promise to always look after her.

Leo, noticing that Tai was looking at her, glanced quickly over and gave him a smile. She wondered what he was thinking to have such a gloomy face. Someday she would figure out why Tai was as complicated as he was, but for now, she would just have to be patient and let him go at his own pace. One minute, he seemed to be as happy as ever, yet others, he would hide behind masks as if his life depended on it.

They rode the rest of the way, talking idly about nothing and everything in-between. Mainly about Leo time. For such old men, she was surprised at how curious they were. Even Allanon had many questions for her. Tai had gone into one of those moods again and stayed out of the conversation, although eyed Leo when something peaked his interest. At one point, Bremen questioned how such a device (her CD Walkman) could play music. He didn't seem to believe her when she answered him. So, she dug through her CD case, found a CD she had just bought and let him listen to it. He was in a trance while listening to it. It did, indeed, play music. The music was so different from what he had heard before, too. He passed the CD Walkman to an interested Tai, who displayed the same face while listening to it. When Tai offered it to Allanon, he shrugged it away, thinking it was a waste of technology and time for such an advanced civilization.

To the end of the day, as the travellers were riding across a plain, the moor cat stopped all of a sudden. Ears pricked, it sniffed the air tentatively. High above, clouds were forming at a rapid rate: gaining strength and circling the sky. The moor cat looked at the four others, looking anxious and uneasy. The horses also seemed a bit on edge and whinnied and sidestepped.

Allanon, noticing the clouds and its increasing strength, knew that they were in for a storm. The wind was already howling around them and it would be wise for them to take shelter. Tai and Leo looked around hurriedly, noting the danger they were. Leo was especially frightened as she had never been in a storm like this, and one where there were no concrete buildings to take shelter in. She suddenly missed the weatherman on TV.

Allanon lifted his arm and pointed to a grouping of trees about half a mile. "Over there!" his voice boomed over the wail of the storm. "It will be safer over there than out in the open!"

Bremen and Tai nodded their heads as Allanon started galloping his horse and Leo's towards the small shelter. "Hang on!" warned Bremen in front of her. Leo quickly tightened her grip on Bremen's waste. The storm was getting worse. Leo could see a wall of rain heading in their direction. They had to make it to the shelter or it would be dangerous to ride their horses at a gallop.

A their horses were within twenty feet of the trees, the storm hit, drenching everyone and chilling them to the bone. They reached the shelter and quickly dismounted the horses, tying them to the trees since they were whinnying and rearing like crazy. Allanon went up to them and used a magic to calm them down.

Leo was shaking, but not just from the cold. She was feeling something a lot like when that guy had been chasing her. Luckily, he would have died a long time ago like everybody else had. Reaching around her shoulder, she brought her brother's bow around. Staring at the polished surface, she wondered what he would do in her situation. He was always so controlled and calm when something unexpected happened. So many times, he had gotten into fights at school, but besides his short height and his small weight, he would always win. It wasn't that he would win by physical strength, he just had a lot of spirit and in the end, he would psyche them out from his steady gaze and unwavering courage. That was why she admired him.

Still staring at the bow, the moor cat, still unnamed, walked over. With its teeth, it yanked at her pant legs, breaking her from her memories. Looking down angrily, the moor cat seemed to be nervous about something. Its head looked off into the distance, sensing danger. Leo peered out, not finding what the cat was apparently seeing. Tai, who had seen the cat's movements, looked in the direction the other two were looking. With his elven eyes, he found something through the growing darkness that Leo did not.

A tornado!

Grabbing the sleeve of Leo, he yanked Leo in the direction of the Druids. "A tornado! It's coming this way!" Terror raced through Leo at his words. The Druids looked to where Tai was pointing frantically. The tornado could be seen when the lightning flashed, showing them the monstrous size of it. Allanon was the first to move. Running towards the horses, which were again panicking besides his magic, and set them free. Animals had a sixth sense about these things and would be able to manouvour around the storm.

Bremen sprinted ahead and Tai marvelled at the old man's speed. For such an old guy, he still had a lot of stamina. Looking back, a flash of lightning showed him that the tornado was getting closer. Picking up a frozen Leo and tossing her over his shoulder, he ran after Bremen with Allanon in tow and Leo demanding to be let down.

Bremen's eyes raced, trying to find any place that could provide them with shelter. Bremen glanced back, noticing that Allanon had stopped. His arms were stretched out, making an X as he was warming up to use his magic. _He'll need help._ Both Druids found a strong footing and began building their energy. Closing their eyes in concentration, both let out streaks of fire lacing into the base of the tornado. As if in response, the tornado picked up speed as if in anger.

Bremen looked on at his failed attempt knowing full well that this storm was not at all natural. Glancing over at Leo, he wondered why this weather was still going on. They should have stopped. Allanon, too, looked over and Leo and came up with the same question.

By now the tornado was getting far too close and there was nowhere to hide. Tai finally realized their predicament and brought out a rope and began trying Leo and himself to a tree. Deep down, he knew that this wouldn't work and he cursed himself for it. If only he could do more…. Signalling the Druids to do the same, he and Leo watched as the tornado came barrelling towards them.

Leo had gone strangely quiet. All she could think of was at how ironic this was. All of the bad weather had followed her here to the future. You would think that fate would not be that cruel, but apparently it was. Then a strange feeling started creeping over her. At first, she just shrugged it off as being nothing more than fear, but then it began to grow. She looked around for help: yelling to get their attention, but the storm drowned out her voice. Frantically, she tugged at Tai's sleeve. As he turned to look at her, a look of surprise mixed with fear filled his eyes. Leo's body was glowing. It was literally glowing like the sun, faintly at first, but then brighter. Finally her eyes became totally filled with the light except for the centre where her pupils could still be seen. Finally even those disappeared and she became a totally different person. Standing straight up from where she had been crouching, she looked out and the storm disinterestedly. Sweeping her eyes from one direction to another, she took in everything she saw, but didn't. She no longer recognized the men around her, even Tai who was looking up at her hopelessly.

But she did realize that there was danger. It had something to do with the storm. Yes, the storm was the danger. But why did she care? She could get out of there and leave these strange creatures behind and leave the storm to go its own path. But, there was something different about the storm itself. It wasn't natural. There was an unknown force behind it and she vaguely realized that she should know what that source was.

Again she looked at the men. Maybe she should help them. In the back of her mind, her conscience was screaming at her to do so. Untying the ropes that bound her and ignoring Tai's protests, she stepped forward and faced the tornado. Closing her eyes, a light radiated from her, enfolding her and a sense of familiarity ran through her, but she didn't care. She would help those men. Lifting her arms to the sky, wind came under her control while another fought to take back that control.

Leo was totally lost in the magic's thrall with no way of returning until she exhausted herself. During this time, the Druids and Tai's eyes were averted to the middle of the storm. The storm's centre seemed to be struggling at Leo's assault. For the briefest of minutes with a single flash of lightning, the three could see a form in the middle of the storm. In that one moment, they could see the outline of a man, though something did not seem right. Something about the way it was holding itself and the shape of it was not quite right.

Finally, the storm simply ceased. Immediately, the clouds dissipated into nothingness and they were left with a star filled night. The three continued to stare at Leo's immobile form. Then she swayed and the light ran from her as she toppled to the ground. Quickly, the Druids ran to her side. Tai stayed where he was. He had been the only one to see what was in her eyes and he was frightened by what he saw in them. It was like she hadn't even remembered him. Whatever was happening to her, it was taking over her very soul.

The night slipped by as the four began to make camp for the night. Bremen had gone out in search of food since their horses that were carrying food were nowhere to be found. With no pots to cook with, it looked like they would have to eat their food raw. Scrounging around for roots and berries, he wondered anew about the events that night. The question that drove him the most was why this type of weather was still happening. They should have stopped when Leo was let out of her confinement in the lake at the Hadeshorn. But they now seemed to be increasing in their strength. What could be causing them if not Leo herself?

During the storm when Leo had gone up against it, he had noticed the change in her, too, like Tai and Allanon had seen as well. Strangely enough though, Tai would not talk about Leo's transformation. He seemed so reluctant to show just what he had seen. Given time, he may eventually tell them. When Leo had come around, she recalled nothing beyond looking at Tai when she had started to glow. Everything after that became an increasing blur. That was all she would say, but there was more she would not share.

Strange, Bremen thought, that both should be so closed mouthed about this one event. Allanon had become frustrated with the two of them and had taken a stroll. Bremen had also noticed a change in Allanon's character. Before, he had always been patient and willing to try to help others, such as Leo. But now, he just seemed to be drifting apart. Maybe it was his stay in the Hadeshorn that changed him. He, himself, knew that he had changed as well. Fortunately, he hadn't changed that much.

Bending down to dig up some roots, his mind reeled with these unanswered questions.

As the dark Druid walked away from the two youths, he could not help but to feel frustrated. Leo needed help to control the power within her, yet he could only help if she were willing to let him. Tai on the other hand, was not that much help either. He had been there when Leo had changed and saw things that were hidden from the Druids. But why wouldn't he confide in them? It was like the two of them were teaming up against them, yet they were all supposed to be on just one. If he could only understand what Leo was going through, and what was troubling Tai, he could help. At the moment, he was just a helpless bystander and the two struggled on.

The night grew cooler as the Druid walked on. As his mind relaxed and eased, he grew to finally understand that being patient and waiting on them was not going to get them anywhere. He would have to make the first move. But how would he gain their trust? Tai despised him because he insisted Allanon cursed him with the Bloodtrust from so many generations ago, starting with Brin and Jair. Leo hated him because of their different views on things. His world and hers were apparently very different form each other. Or maybe it was just them. Maybe that was why he liked her. Because she was one of the only ones who would dare speak up to him. Very few have. A few had been Menion Leah, Walker Boh, Shea, Wil, and Brin Ohmsford. Although, in the end, they had built an unbreakable bond with him. Shea had been like a son to him. Wil, a companion and Brin, a hope. Menion and Walker had been friends to him, even though they were the worst of them all.

Thinking back, he found that everything seemed so foreign to him. It was as everything was slipping away. Maybe it was because of the Hadeshorn. Maybe it was because of his age. Whatever it was, he did not know what to think of it.

Again, he thought back to Leo and Tai. He had no right in getting angry and then walking off like he had. He was the responsible one, being a Druid. Looking up at the star-filled sky, he accepted his mistake and began tracing his way back. He would have to try harder, to become the Druid he had once been.

He just had to figure out how he was going to do that.

After building a fire for the four travelers, Tai walked over to an oak and leaned against the rough surface. The cat walked over to him and sat on its haunches beside him. Leo was stretched out by the fire. She had already fallen asleep, exhausted from her use of the magic. He still pondered just what type of magic she wielded. She obviously had no control over it. But whatever it was, it had saved their lives. He could not believe the power of it. Even his wishsong may not be that strong. It frightened him that with all that power, it was out of control. It had taken him years to master the wishsong, although at times it would escape him. If it did, though, he could bring it around quickly enough. The wishsong would rise and fall with his emotions. Maybe Leo's did as well.

Walking over to a pack he had over his shoulder, he shuffled through it until he found a blanket. Walking over to the fire, he placed the blanket over Leo. Her eyes slipped open and she mouthed the words "Thank you". He flushed and quickly turned away. Slipping over to the now dwindling fire, he added wood to it. Everything about this journey seemed so strange. But, having a girl from the past come into the future was not exactly normal either.

The cat beside him shifted slightly and yawned. It finally just walked over to Leo and curled up behind her back. Tai grinned as the he saw the cat was more than double her size. He still had not come up with a name. Leo had once joked about calling him Garfield, though he did not understand why she laughed at the name. Staring at the twisting, orange fire, a name came into his head. Flare. Not only did it remind him of the flames he was staring at, but it also reminded him of Leo's magic. What better name than that?

Tai walked over to the cat, who started at his approach, causing him to hesitate as well. The cat, or Flare, was still wild and probably would not be tamed for a while. If they had only stayed in Paranor for a while longer, Walker Boh would have been able to help with his magic. Walker had always been able to use his magic that way. It was just a shading of the wishsong that he was born with.

Tai leaned down as the cat looked at him. Flare. It was a good name. "What do you think?" he asked the cat in a whisper. The cat just looked at him. "Do you want to be called Flare?" The cat continued to stare into his eyes. "From now on, that's your name. Flare." The cat tilted his head as if to understand. Shaking his head, Tai walked back to the tree and stared off into the stars.

About ten minutes later Allanon appeared from out of the shadows, just as forbidding as the first time Tai had seen him. His face was etched even more in the glow of the fire's dying embers. Again he remembered why he disliked the mystic, but put the thought aside.

"You were gone a long time."

Allanon's eyes shifted towards Leo and nodded. She was curled up beside the moor cat. Looking over at Tai again, he asked, "Have you found a name for the moor cat yet?" He made sure to keep his voice low as to not disturb Leo's sleep.

Without lowering his gaze, Tai nodded his head. "I've decided to call him Flare." Allanon's mouth broke out into a sarcastic grin. It was obvious where he got the name.

"Why did you curse my family?"

The question was so sudden that at first the Druid could only stare. Searching the mind of the other, he found that Tai truly did believe that Allanon had 'cursed' his family.

"That's a curious question. But first you must realize that I did what I did because I had to, not because I wanted to. If I had not, this world would be a much different one, don't you agree?" Tai still had not blinked, but remained motionless. "Think about the battles all those years ago in the time of Par and Coll Ohmsford, Walker Boh, and Wren Elessidil. Remember the Shadowen? Don't you think that if they had not gone out and destroyed the threat to the Four Lands, this world would no longer exist. In a way, it would be just as devastating as the chaos that destroyed Leo's time." Both looked in Leo's direction, wondering just how bad things would have been. Luckily, she had not had to find out, although she did have an idea of what went on. Tai looked down at his feet, suddenly ashamed, but still confused.

"But couldn't the Druids themselves have dealt with the Shadowen?" Tai asked with an arched eyebrow.

"I see you have not been told these stories thoroughly. Very well. I shall. The Shadowen were indeed the threat. They would have consumed the entire world and made it their own if not for your ancestors. Also, in that time, the Druids no longer existed…. If they had, the responsibility would have been theirs to rid the world of the Shadowen. Unfortunately, that was not the case. That was why the Ohmsford family was needed, especially Par who was the one who put an end to the enemy. That was part of Par's charge. Walker's charge had been a bit different. He was to restore the Druids and the Keep. He did so before the Shadowen threat was terminated, but had not yet built a new society of Druids." The mystic paused to let Tai take in everything.

Tai's eyes looked over and fixed on Allanon's. "So, the Druids could not help since they were no longer there."

"In the end, the Ohmsfords saved the lives of thousands of people from a horrible fate."

Tai could not believe that his troubled mind could be answered so easily by this man. The man that he had hated for nearly his entire life. To just have all his questions answered just like that.

"It really is that simple, Tai."

"Why didn't anyone tell me?"

"Did you ask?"

That seemed to hit home. No, Tai had never asked. He had always been afraid to. "But, wait a minute, if the Druids are now back, why do I have to be here?"

The Druid just answered with a sarcastic, "You don't." Again Allanon looked over at Leo to see if she was awake, but he could see she wasn't

Twenty feet away, Leo was listening to every word that was said.

Why _was_ Tai staying?


	7. Chapter Seven

Bremen finally returned with roots and berries for the travelers. Shaking awake a 'sleeping' Leo, they ate the food raw. The four greeted each other uncomfortably. Crossing her legs by the fire, Leo began eating some sort of red berry Bremen had found. The berry wasn't quite ripe and the juice of it was sour. Scrunching her nose in disgust, she declared, "What I would give for a hamburger right now. Even the _bun _would be great. ," Leo stated, shaking her head. Bremen, who was very much amused by her comment, let out into a low chuckle. Allanon was not that far behind with the sarcastic grin. Tai just looked dumbfounded. "What?! Well it would!" All of a sudden Leo herself broke into peals of laughter and rocked back on her back. All three just grinned at her, though Flare looked at her as if she had gone insane.

They talked a lot after. Mostly about everything and nothing at the same time. Leo would bring up her family from time to time and tell stories. She mostly talked about her brother and her. About how they always got into trouble with her parents. A favourite among the group seemed to be when Leo and Jake had been camping and this bear had come into the clearing. At the time Leo had been six and her brother had been eight. Each still had no fear and thought that bears where cuddly things you could hug. They had been brought up in the presence of Winnie the Pooh and Teddy Ruxbin, so their juvenile minds did not quite realize the danger. So, they both went up to the bear and tried to hug it. In the end, the bear ended up running off because they would not leave it alone.

With that story, Leo even got Allanon grinning. Tai would join in, though he would tell stories that happened after his mother had died. Nobody objected. Bremen, like the other two, would tell a few stories as well about his early life. Unfortunately, Allanon did not join in the story telling, though he did listen interestedly, especially when Leo talked about the life she lived in. He had seen the ancient buildings of the city, those that were standing, and he could imagine what they would have looked like. Unfortunately, when he was within the Hadeshorn, he was shown only glimpses of the past.

The three finished eating and packed in for the night. The two Druids walked over to the fire as Leo said that she was going to stay up a few more minutes. Tai was already stretching by a tree as he settled in and Flare curled up beside him contently. Leo smiled at the scene.

She began walking over to the darkness just outside of the fire's reach. All that talk about families had gotten to her. Family. She wondered if she would ever see them again. Maybe she could go forward in time, but maybe she could not go back. She was sealed in that lake for thousands of years. She could not be sealed to go back in time. There were so many things that she would love to do over again.

Shaking her head exhaustedly, she finally sat down about forty yards from where the others slept. She remembered the excitement of her singing. Her manager had truly felt that she would have been a great success. Her friends didn't even know. Maybe, after they could not find her, her family had told her friends. She wondered what their faces had looked liked. Maybe they were happy about the news, or they could have been sad that she was not there to fulfill her manager's dreams for her. Even without realizing it, she began to sing softly. It had begun to become one of her favourites. It was about a girl going out into the world, not really knowing what to expect and how her boyfriend and this girl were drifting apart…. Come to think of it, she had not finished the song. Her manager had left this one up to her to finish and she had never gotten around to it. She started the song over again.

_It seemed so long ago, and I'm blinded by this haze._

_I miss you now ,I miss you always._

_But life is not so easy. Where do I go from here?_

_I can't deny it,I live with so much fear._

_I can't forget those last goodbyes. We had to part_

_With tears in our eyes. _

_How many days has it been since I saw that smile?_

_The one that tells it all_

Leo paused in her singing. Something wasn't right with that last verse. It just seemed so burdened to her. Perhaps she should think of something more cheerful. Unfortunately, she was not in a chipper mood. Shaking her head wearily, she began walking farther out. She just did not feel tired. There were too many questions. She suddenly wished for her brother. He was always so comforting and sturdy. He had always known what to say to make her feel better. Now, he was gone. She would not be surprised if he took her disappearance the hardest. They had always had a bond together that never wavered. She hoped that he had gotten over the lose of his sister, but she seriously doubted it.

Staring up into the star filled night, her grief overcame her, and with it, a wind blew past her unexpectedly. Shivering from the coolness it brought with it, she inched her way back to the camp. Again, she thought of the dark Druid, Allanon. He always seemed to have something against her. But Bremen made up for Allanon's disposition with his kindness. He was always so patient with her, as if he really knew what she was going through. Even Tai, with his hard exterior, sympathized with her. He had lost both his parents, so he knew what it was like to have no one.

She sat down by the fire and added another log to its hearth and watched as the flames flew up hungrily. This was going to be a long trip.

The four and Flare set out once again, without their horses. The others were not exactly pleased by the turn of events, but Leo was glad she did not have to board that horse again. They set out in at dawn with a sleepy eyed Leo. The only real thought in her head for the first hour was wondering how anyone could get up this early. Bremen had already found some more wonderful fruit somewhere in the forest. He had built a fire and roasted them over the flame of their fire with water-soaked sticks. Noticing the disgust on Leo's face, Bremen said, "Nothing like the nutrition from roasted roots."

Leo just shook her head, rolling her eyes. Perhaps the man was senile if he could crack jokes about some veggies that tasted like charred wood. Or at least the charred part seemed to be a palatable preference for the old man. "Perhaps I'll prepare my own roots…" she trailed off, not really talking to Bremen really, though he did chuckle a bit at her comment. At least he was always good for finding amusement in strange situations. Shortly afterwards, they had set off on foot.

"How much farther is this place again?" asked Leo, clearly annoyed at their predicament.

Allanon shot her a sideways glance. "Why such an annoyed tone? I would think that you would have liked the idea of not riding those horses again."

Leo shot a dark glare back at him. "Did you notice me complaining all that much near the end there? No? Thought not… Snarky little bastard you are…" Tai gave her an appraising look, but quickly turned away when she caught him staring. Huffing, she went on, "You didn't answer my question oh high and mighty druid." She couldn't help but lace that last part with a nice dose of sarcasm.

Taking no note of the name, Allanon answered back, "About a week I suppose with the loss of the horses"  
"Pity really," Bremen added. "I was really becoming attached to that colt."

"You _would_, wouldn't you? People and their abnormal attachments to animals."

The dark druid simply answered, "Then somebody better educate what a moor cat is then. Last I heard, they were of the animal species."

Reaching out, Leo stroked the moor cat's ears. "Alright, so not all animals are bad. Though, then again, you could say humans are also animals. Mammals to be exact."

Tai looked over at her as though she had grown a second head, but instead of arguing, he simply shrugged it off as another strange idea of hers. She caught his eye, grinning at his obvious disparagement. She had since given up on explaining anything related to modern, or perhaps not so modern, science. One step at a time she figured. There may be time to at least give him the basics before she found a way home.

The four fell into silence once more and continued their trek towards the ruin of a city. There wasn't much more to talk about as they still had no further ideas with regards to Leo's strange powers. She could barely remember anything as it was and since none either than Tai had a close enough look, they could not begin to examine those powers. Tai, himself, refused to give much information, though he simply said that he didn't really recall much. Whether his lie was accepted by the others he didn't know, though they didn't push him any further. He had been difficult enough with cooperating among the others.

For three day, nothing out of the ordinary happened. Leo took pride in annoying Allanon, Bremen remained his normally upbeat self, Tai kept silent most of the time,… and the moor cat looked on at the four humans with a discerning look that clearly thought they were all children.

As the sun was setting on the third day, Leo settled down on a somewhat soft spot of earth beside the fire, gazing into the flames. She couldn't help but wonder about her family again. What was it about a fire that brought on memories?

Her brother… what had he looked like when he was an adult? Did he get married? Children? Could Leo have been an aunt? And her parents… what ever happened to them? He glanced around her, noting the others resting as well. Allanon, as usual, could barely be seen from where he lay beside a thicket, Tai was resting up against a tree, breathing in a slow, restful manner, and Bremen was snoring on the other side of the fire.

Taking a deep breath, she let it out and looked skyward. Never before had she seen so many stars. Even in the countryside, light pollution still had managed to disrupt the stars brilliance, but now… She couldn't help but smile. With her finger, she started tracing constellations in the air absentmindedly. It was something her dad and her loved to do whenever they had gone camping. Just the act reminded her so much of her dad and how much fun they would have while camping. That was where her dad had taught her brother how to shoot with a bow. She looked over to where her brother's bow lay, an idea popping up in her head.

As quietly as she could, she got up and grabbed her bow, making sure to not step on twigs or leaves on the ground. She then borrowed a few of Tai's arrows and walked softly out of the camping spot.

She felt a tug at her shirt and looked to find Flare pulling on her. Leo smiled, rugged the cat's ears and led them both away.

A little ways away, Leo and the moor cat came upon a clearing. Looking up, Leo noted a near full moon, perfect for lighting in a place like this. Taking the arrows out, she notched on onto the bow's string and pulled it back. Flare just looked up to her from his place beside her.

"How did this go again…?" Pulling back as far as she could, she let the arrow fly across the clearing. "Ummm…" She hadn't been aiming properly and the arrow was lost in the brush. Shrugging, she decided that she would search for it later. Notching another arrow, she aimed carefully at a fallen log not too far away. Her arrow came close, just missing it by a few inches. Pleased with herself, she continued shooting arrows until she ran out.

Having collected all the ones aimed at the log, most actually being embedded in it, she went to go look for the last arrow in the thickets. Pushing aside branches, she found it buried in twigs and leaves. A breeze lifted her hair, smelling wonderfully of lilacs. Curious, she walked further one, slinging the arrows onto her back and Flare following closely behind. She barely walked fifty feet before she saw where the smell was coming from. Before her lay an entire field of lilacs, stretching for a half mile all around. Flare moved into them, clearly enjoying their scent as well. Smiling, Leo wondered that the cat could stand such a powerful smell with such a keen nose. Walking a ways into them, she sat down, playing with some flowers beside her, lost in her thoughts.

It wasn't until a low rumble came from Flare that she noticed the shadow being cast to her left. Jumping up, she turned quickly, notching an arrow almost expertly into place on her bow.

"Easy, Leo." Leo felt herself grow with relief when she saw Allanon behind her.

Replacing the arrow, she remarked, "Next time, a simple 'hello' would suffice."

Allanon remained silent, apparently gazing into the field as well, though Leo knew that he wasn't thinking how pretty or how nice they smelled. "I saw you practicing with that bow. You're quite good."

"Did my ears deceive me, Allanon? Or did I just receive a compliment?"

He ruffed, adding, "You should be sleeping. We still have three or four days left."

Leo stood up, brushing her pants off. "You're right. But," she added, "I'm glad I found this place." Allanon's face softened. If Leo didn't know better, she could have sworn that she saw a smile. Yawning, she followed behind the departing druid with Flare following reluctantly behind.

A truce was struck between the two humans. Nothing more needed to be said.


End file.
